TONE/SHADE

WHAT IS TONE?OR TONAL VALUE

• In art, tone refers to the degree of lightness or darkness of an area. Tone varies from the bright white of a light source through shades of gray to the deepest black shadows.

Exercise 1Graduated Tone

Graduated tone can be used to create the illusion of space and form in a drawing. It is a very useful skill to develop.Use a B, 2B, or darker grade of pencil for your shading. Lighter grades (H, 2H etc.) will not give enough depth to your darkest tones.Just start by shading the area you wish to be dark and slowly build up the tone. As you work towards the light, gradually ease the pressure on your pencil until you can no longer the mark it makes. You then patiently repeat this process, building a depth to the shading, adjusting any irregular areas and trying to keep the tonal changes as smooth as possible until you achieve the intensity of tone that you desire.

Practice the exercises above to help improve your drawing skills.

Exercise 2 Exercise 3 Exercise 4

Exercise 5 Exercise 6 Exercise 7

POLYCHROMATIC MONOCHROMATIC

BLUE TONES

PICASSO’S BLUE PERIOD PAINTINGS